


You're the one I follow [part II]

by energie_vie



Series: Magnetic [5]
Category: The Old Guard (Comics), The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Andy Quynh Joe and Nicky towards the end, Developing Relationship, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Love, Mild Language, Mutual Pining, POV Nile Freeman, Pining, Post-Movie: The Old Guard (2020), Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:28:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27431281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/energie_vie/pseuds/energie_vie
Summary: "It's not midnight but it's late in the evening when they make it to the small flat on the outskirts of the city and this is the moment when Nile realises that their holiday is actually over. She already misses having Booker all to herself. On the other hand, something has shifted in their relationship, in the way theyarearound each other. She can't really put her finger on it but she knows he senses it too."
Relationships: Booker | Sebastien le Livre/Nile Freeman
Series: Magnetic [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987831
Comments: 19
Kudos: 105





	You're the one I follow [part II]

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is part two, Booker and Nile's actual holiday. I've focused more on their interactions rather than on the locations they visit because I would've ended up with a way longer story and I don't think that would've been the point. 
> 
> I did, however, mention a few landmarks, so for those of you that might be interested, there are links to the corresponding Wikipedia pages in the end notes.
> 
> Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it.
> 
> EDIT: cover art at the end of the story by the wonderful StarWatcher.

**Day 0**

'I forgot to ask you, Seb, have you ever been to Romania?' Nile asks as she joins Booker on the couch where he's rapidly typing on his laptop.

'Yeah, twice: once during World War II and once immediately after the fall of Communism.'

'So, not recently.'

'Nope. And those two times weren't exactly leisure visits either. Why?'

'Just curious,' Nile replies innocently but Booker stares at her unblinkingly until she caves. 'Ok, fine. I feel a bit bad for dragging you with me on this trip without asking for your input first.'

'You're not dragging me anywhere, dearest, I'm following willingly,' he replies gently and Nile's heart does a somersault in her chest. 'I'm also very excited, so don't second-guess yourself.'

'Ok,' she murmurs a bit breathlessly, smiling a huge smile.

\---

**Day 1**

Nile has always believed that Murphy's law is nothing more than a gimmick but her first day of holiday disproves her unequivocally. Absolutely everything that could go wrong does go wrong and by the end of the day she's more exhausted than she's ever been in the last fourteen months.

It all starts in the morning when she misplaces her passport, followed by Booker misplacing his phone, which leads to them racing down the stairs because their taxi is waiting and Nile curses out loud whoever the hell picked this flat on the fourth floor of a building with no elevator. Turns out it had been Booker.

The taxi doesn't wait for them, of course, so they have to find another one. Obviously, they arrive late at the airport, miss their flight and have to wait five hours for the next. This one gets delayed by another hour and by the time boarding starts she's battling a massive headache that comes and goes with the precision of a metronome. Nile just wishes they could teleport themselves directly into their Airbnb studio. However, she knows it's only five in the afternoon, plenty of time for other things to go to shit.

For one, in Bucharest it's raining cats and dogs and they haven't rented a car because Nile had felt uncharacteristically adventurous. This is Booker's bad influence, she thinks, glaring at him while they're heading for Customs. What irks her more is the fact that he seems completely unfazed by their bout of bad luck. He's whistling under his breath, all but skipping happily like Little fucking Red Riding Hood and Nile really wants to stick her right foot out and trip him.

'You know what would be funny? The Airbnb reservation not having gone through,' he grins carelessly.

'Seb, if you fucking jinx it, I swear to god I'll kill you with my bare hands!' she mutters darkly.

It takes an eternity to get through Customs because apparently June is a touristy month and it's also a Saturday and the airport is packed. Another eternity to find where the express subway is and then they also have to take a taxi and it's almost dark outside when they find themselves in the apartment building, worn out and famished.

'Do you have a fetish for old buildings with no elevators?' Nile scowls. 'Please tell me we're on the ground floor.'

'Third,' he mumbles sheepishly. 'It has a nice view of the park,' he adds just as quietly and Nile sighs.

The studio looks really nice, cozy and clean and she feels her spirits lifting, until she notices there's just one king-sized bed.

'The pictures showed two twin beds,' Booker says defensively.

'I give up,' Nile wails, collapsing on the floor and lying face down in the middle of the room. 'Today has been horrible and I'm hungry and tired and I just wanna lie here till the end of time!'

'Should've gone for drama classes instead of ballet.'

'Oh, fuck off!'

'Maybe the armchair is extensible. If not, I'll sleep on the floor.'

'Are you out of your mind?'

'There's only one bed,' he enunciates slowly, as if he were talking to a child.

'I don't mind sleeping with you,' she says and Booker wags his eyebrows. 'In the same bed, you idiot,' she continues, ignoring the pounding of her heart.

'Then finish your tantrum and let's order something to eat. We're on holiday, it's gonna be awesome!' he grins.

\---

**Day 2**

'You were right, the view is totally worth you jabbing me in the ribs all night long,' Nile quips sardonically from the small balcony overlooking the park.

'It's a king-sized bed, you could have just moved a bit further,' Booker retorts from the kitchen where he's making coffee.

'I did. You followed.'

And she had absolutely loved it, rolling on her other side in the middle of the night to find him no more than ten centimetres away. The jabs had been painful, though, who knows what he had been dreaming.

'Next time just wake me up or something.'

'Next time I'm jabbing you back,' she says, poking her head in the kitchen to make a face at him.

'Such a drama queen,' he mutters under his breath when she's out of sight.

'I heard that.'

'Don't know what you're talking about. Anyway, wanna go find some breakfast and then wander through the park? We also need to exchange some money.'

'Yeah, sounds good.'

Forty-five minutes later Booker is carrying a paper bag filled to the brim with pastries and two coffees, while Nile is pestering him to share all the Romanian words he knows.

'I can't believe you speak this too!'

'I don't speak it, I only know a few useful phrases and I'm rusty as hell,' he says, gesturing with his head to a bench in the shade.

Even at ten in the morning the temperature is in the high twenties and it doesn't feel at all like it had rained heavily the previous day.

'Seb, you had an entire conversation with the bank clerk, that's in no way rusty. When did you even learn it?'

'Well, to begin with, it's quite similar to French, although it may not sound the same. I learned it in the Republic of Moldova, we stayed there for a few months in the late 80s,' Booker explains and when he sees Nile's confusion, he adds, 'It's the same language, albeit the accent is quite strong in Moldova. But people from the two countries can easily understand each other. However, some Moldovans insist theirs is a different language, which is a bit stupid if you ask me.'

Nile is watching him attentively, trying to remember all these details because you never know when they might come in handy and she's probably not blinking too much because Booker cocks his head to the left inquisitively.

'What is it?'

'Nothing. I just love listening to you.'

She could swear he blushes just a little bit.

\---

**Day 3**

'You've got to be kidding me! Please don't tell me this is what you have planned for today,' Booker almost whines from somewhere behind her and Nile chuckles at his tone.

'Um.. yeah?' she replies but it sounds more like a question than an answer.

'Oh, god! Why?'

Now he's whining in earnest and Nile turns around to look at him. His face is all scrunched up and he looks absolutely miserable.

'Why not?' she asks slowly and it seems like a conversation between two toddlers.

'I hate sightseeing tours!' he exclaims passionately and Nile's eyebrows lift in utter confusion.

'But this is a Hop On Hop Off!'

Great, now she's whining too. Booker's definitely a bad influence.

'Same shit.'

'Um, no? For one, there's no guide blabbering non-stop. If you want to use the headphones, fine, if not, you can just enjoy the ride, though I, for one, will definitely listen because I want to know what I'm seeing and who knows when I'll be in Romania again. On holiday!' she interjects when he opens his mouth to say something. 'Also, there are like eight stops or whatever and the ticket is valid for twenty-four hours so we can get off and visit what we want and then we can get back on another bus when we're done and continue the tour. You know, _hop on, hop off_?'

She looks at him expectantly and Booker is wearing such a pained expression, as if such a tour goes against all of his principles, so Nile decides to wing it and pull out the big guns. She half-closes her eyes and lowers her voice, at the same time placing one hand on his chest.

'Don't you trust me?'

Booker blinks rapidly, opens his mouth a couple of times only to close it immediately and then swallows audibly. It's both entertaining and exhilarating to watch. Finally, he huffs, turns around and goes to the kitchen without saying another word.

At noon they're both waiting for the bus to arrive at the starting point. Them and about twenty other people, all chattering animatedly and taking pictures of everything in sight. Booker still looks a bit like he's in pain and pulls the hat he's wearing even lower over his shades.

'I feel like such a tourist!' he mutters grumpily and Nile just laughs out loud.

'That's because you _are_ a tourist. Now, be good and I promise to take you to a cool bookshop I stumbled across while looking for this tour.'

She laughs again when he grins and nods excitedly.

\---

**Day 4**

'This is not exactly what I had imagined,' Nile says and she hates that she sounds so disappointed.

'It's a medieval fortress. What _did_ you imagine?'

'I don't know, but after the other one we saw.. What's it called again?'

'Peleș,' Booker supplies helpfully.

'Right, Peleș,' she repeats and hopes she hasn't completely massacred the pronunciation. 'This one looks underwhelming,' she mutters dejectedly.

 _This_ being Bran, the famous Dracula castle that the entire idea to visit Romania had revolved around. Booker sighs and rolls his eyes and Nile wonders if this is what he looked like when one of his kids was being unreasonable. For a split second she even expects him to snap at her and the thought makes her smile. However, his voice is warm and gentle when he speaks again, as it always is when he's talking to her.

'You're only seeing it from a coach window. I'm sure you'll have a different opinion when up close.'

Of course he's right. The castle is both impressive and imposing when you're at the foot of the hill it's built on and Nile feels excitement bubbling over. She grabs his hand and drags him to buy tickets, then fidgets throughout the thirty minutes they have to wait in line and grins like a maniac for the entirety of the tour, taking pictures of absolutely every nook and cranny. From beside her Booker smiles indulgently and doesn't protest when Nile pulls him close for selfie after selfie.

'If I'd known you're such a huge Dracula fan, I would've suggested we stop at one of the stalls to get you a pair of plastic fangs,' he teases, nudging her shoulder.

Nile slowly turns to look at him, eyes wide and mouth agape.

'There are stalls that sell fangs?'

'Um, yeah. Dozens of them,' he frowns. 'They're all over the place, how could you not notice?'

Because her full attention had been on him while in the coach and then on the castle as soon as they got off. Nile shrugs sheepishly.

'That's it, no more sugar for you for the day. Or coffee. You're hyperactive and easily distracted and I'm too old to babysit.'

'Can we get the fangs, though?' she bats her eyelashes and grins, completely dismissing the snarky comments.

They end up buying fangs for the six of them and various other trinkets and Booker grumbles about him being the one to have to carry them for the rest of the day.

\---

**Day 5**

'Could you _please_ be so kind as to once again explain the logic behind this idea?' Booker mutters through gritted teeth and Nile would laugh so hard at his formal speech if she weren't feeling really bad, so she bites her lower lip to stay serious and murmurs yet another apology.

'You didn't answer my question,' he continues dangerously. 

They're stuck in traffic. Or something of the sort. Nile's not sure what to call the fact that they have dozens of cars in front of them, dozens behind and they've been moving intermittently no more than five kilometres per hour for the past twenty minutes. It's the same on the other lane, which doesn't really make things better but she's petty like that and if they're suffering, let everyone else suffer too. 

'For the hundredth time, if we want to hike to the cross we need to take the cable car from... I forgot the name,' she says lamely.

'Bușteni.'

'Right. So we need to do this in the morning, unless you want to hike back under the moonlight.'

'No, thank you,' Booker says shortly.

'Thought so. Therefore, it's best if we spend the night there and bright and early tomorrow morning we can take the cable car. I read the line is huge in the summer.'

'And during your research didn't you, by any chance, come across the fact that it's a nightmare to get there by car?'

'I didn't do research. No place for research when we're trying to have fun, remember?'

Booker starts banging his head against the steering wheel, so it's a good thing they're currently not in motion.

'Why, oh, why do you learn only the stupidest things from me?' he wails.

'Maybe _you_ should take drama classes,' Nile says impassively. 'Besides, it's a good opportunity for us to bond some more.'

'Sweetheart, you know you mean the world to me but right now I'm so pissed off that I feel like throwing you out of the car, except we haven't moved for the past five minutes and you wouldn't even get a bruise!' his voice crescendos towards the end.

Nile, however, gets stuck on the first part of his mini-rant and just smiles stupidly at him while the butterflies in her stomach are multiplying surprisingly fast. 

'Are you even listening to me?'

'Yeah, yeah, throw me out of the car, no bruises, blah, blah, blah. You'll forgive me tomorrow, trust me.'

Booker huffs again, but falls quiet. A few moments later, he gasps in horror.

'We're gonna have to come back the same way!' he cries and this time Nile does laugh out loud.

\---

**Day 6**

'Did you know it holds the Guinness World Record for the world's tallest summit cross?' Nile asks without really expecting an answer.

She's been spouting random bits of trivia for the past four hours, ever since they were waiting in line to get on the cable car and she's genuinely surprised she's managed to memorize so many details just by going through the Wikipedia page. Booker is probably exasperated, though his smile never falters and he nods and hums in all the right places.

'I'm sorry, I've been prattling all day, haven't I?'

'No need to apologise, dearest. I like seeing you happy, so go wild. Besides, who knows when it might prove useful to know it's thirty-six metres tall?' he smiles innocently.

'Oh, shut up,' she says, smacking him on the shoulder but at the same time she's thrilled that he's actually been paying attention.

It's a hot day, even at over two thousand metres above sea level and they've been walking for about two hours. Nile is getting impatient, so she picks up the pace, ignoring Booker's complaints about old age and the youth's lack of respect for seniors. Sure enough, a few minutes and a climb up a slope later and the cross is visible in all its splendour.

'Oh my god, Seb! Oh my god! Hurry up, come on!'

'Darling, it's not gonna disappear if we don't get there in five minutes,' he teases but Nile glares at him so murderously that he raises his hands defensively and rushes to catch up to her.

'Wow, this is amazing!' she whispers in awe when they're at the foot of the monument, craning her neck to look up at the cross and pulling her phone out to take a few pictures.

She turns to Booker to suggest a selfie but can't spot him anywhere. Oh well, later, she thinks and heads to the edge of the platform to take in the view. It's absolutely breathtaking and Nile thanks the entire universe for the lovely weather and the cloudless sky because she can see clearly the valley down below, the resorts and the river and it's magnificent. Booker needs to see this, so she turns around to look for him, only to find him sitting on the stairs of the pedestal, unmoving and staring straight ahead.

'Seb, come see the view, it's amazing!'

'I'm fine over here,' he mumbles, dragging a hand over his face. 

He looks like he's in a trance and maybe just a bit paler, his breath is coming out in short bursts and Nile is slowly getting worried. Just as she's about to ask him what's wrong, it suddenly hits her.

'Oh my god, you're afraid of heights!'

'No, I'm not,' he denies stubbornly. 'I'm just not very comfortable with them.'

'Yeeeah, that's pretty much the definition. Why didn't you say anything? We could have done something else instead,' Nile says gently.

'You really wanted to see it,' he says simply. 'And I enjoyed the hike. I'm just not sure I can get close to the edge, even with the railing.'

'Would it help if I held your hand?'

'I don't know.'

'Wanna try?'

She holds out her hand, reveling in the fact that he takes it without hesitating and they move closer to the railing at a snail's pace. Once there, she lets go of his hand for a second, ignoring his weak sound of protest to get behind him and wrap her arms around his waist, head nestled between his shoulder blades. Within a minute the tension is gone from his body and his breathing is sure and steady.

'Better?' she asks.

'Much, thank you,' he murmurs, placing his hands on top of hers. 'But _you_ can't see anything.'

'I've already seen it, Seb.'

\---

**Day 7**

'Scoot over,' Booker says plainly, towering over her.

Nile doesn't really get why because there's enough room for him to sit down next to her but she doesn't question it and moves to the far edge of the couch. To her immense shock, he lies down with his head in her lap, closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

'I'm dead beat and I hate all tourists that go to touristy places to do touristy things,' he mumbles, halfway to falling asleep.

Not that she would mind it. On the contrary, this would give her the opportunity to study him freely without constantly worrying about being caught. She's studying him _now_ and for some reason she prefers not to analyse too much, her eyes keep returning to his lips. It's painfully tempting to just lean down and-

'-do next?'

'I'm sorry, I didn't catch that,' she admits ruefully.

'Were you studying me?' he asks, laughing with his eyes still closed and Nile needs a few moments to gather her wits.

'I was counting the gray hairs on your temples,' she deadpans and Booker opens his eyes, looking utterly indignant. 'Look, there are five here,' she grins, carding her fingers through his hair and damn it, it's way softer than she'd imagined. 'And three more here,' she adds, continuing to stroke his hair until he closes his eyes and lets out a moan that can only be described as sultry.

'I can't even remember the last time someone played with my hair,' he sighs. 'Maybe my mother when I was a boy.'

For a few moments Nile ponders asking if his wife didn't use to do that too but then decides against it. Why think of the past when the present is so elating.

'I'm sorry we got stuck in traffic again,' she murmurs instead.

'I knew we'd have to come back the same way,' he shrugs.

'Still, let me make it up to you. How about _you_ pick what we do before we have to head to Lyon?' she suggests and Booker snaps his eyes open once more.

'Really?' he grins boyishly.

He's looking at her so intensely and Nile feels her senses go into overdrive. Not only is he lying down with his head in her lap and she's playing with his hair, he's also letting out small sighs from time to time, he smells divine, as usual and now he's so focused on her that it's a wonder she can still string any coherent sentences. At the same time she's fully convinced that no matter how much time she spends around him, she'll never get used to this sensory onslaught.

'I want to bathe in the sea,' he declares, taking Nile completely by surprise.

'Are you serious?'

'Yeah. Think about it, it's only a two-hour drive. We can leave in the morning, spend the night there and return the day after tomorrow. What do you say?' he grins, eyes sparkling with excitement.

Why does he even bother asking, it's not like she can say no to him.

'Let's chill for another hour or so and then we can go to a mall to buy swimsuits,' she grins back, just as excited.

\---

**Day 8**

'Wakey, wakey!' Booker singsongs, playfully tapping his fingers on the back of her hand.

'Wha- What?' Nile mutters groggily, struggling to turn from her stomach to her back and giving up after three failed attempts.

'Come on, Sleeping Beauty, it's getting late and I'm getting hungry.'

'How long was I asleep?' she asks, still a bit disoriented.

'Um, about two hours, give or take.'

'What?! And you let me?' Nile asks almost horrified, turning on her back and then sitting up.

She's not sure what time it is but based on the position of the sun it's long past five o'clock. She wasn't even necessarily tired, how could she have fallen asleep? She remembers lounging in the sand, listening to the waves and the seagulls and Booker's voice reading her a fragment from the book in his lap and then.. nothing. Very strange.

'Why wouldn't I?' he asks, obviously bewildered.

'To keep you company.'

'Nonsense. I had my book. Besides, I liked watching you sleep,' he adds casually and Nile doesn't know how to react except lift both eyebrows questioningly. 'You looked peaceful and relaxed and.. childlike.' She must be sporting a befuddled expression because Booker carries on. 'The rest of the time you're like a spinning top, though I find it very fascinating to try and guess what you're gonna do or say next. I don't think I'm making much sense,' he smiles lopsidedly.

'No, I think I get it,' she smiles back, not really knowing what else to say.

'Anyway, I was thinking...' Booker says, tone suspenseful. 'How about we go to a club tonight?'

'You sure that's a good idea?' Nile asks sceptically. 'We have to drive back to Bucharest tomorrow and knowing you, it's not going to be just one club.'

'Oh, come on, don't be a spoilsport. It's only a two-hour drive. Not to mention the fact that we haven't been to a club since Lisbon. Remember how fun _that_ was?' he grins naughtily.

Of course she does, that entire night has been the fuel for most of her erotic dreams over the past fourteen months, all of them involving Booker one way or another.

'I don't think anything other than alcohol will be available,' she says, trying to bring all her stray thoughts back on track.

'We'll make do.'

'Fine, but if I'm a pain in the ass tomorrow due to lack of sleep, I don't wanna hear any complaining, ok?'

'Cross my heart and hope to die,' Booker says solemnly and then bursts out laughing.

'You're such an idiot!' Nile says fondly, feeling hyped all of a sudden.

Maybe clubbing is actually not a bad idea.

\---

**Day 9**

'This was the worst idea in the history of worst ideas! Ever!' Nile groans, dropping her forehead on the table.

They're in a coffeehouse, waiting for the server to take their order. It's almost noon but she's only managed to grab five hours of sleep and she also has a killer migraine that intensifies and then recedes and then intensifies again, just like the fucking tide.

'I'd say you're being a drama queen again but I'm actually impressed by your eloquence,' Booker smirks, completely insensitive to her plight.

'I knew there wasn't gonna be just one club!' she whines. 'Serves me right for listening to you, you.. you, fiend!'

Booker guffaws, drawing the attention of several people from nearby tables. He carelessly ignores them.

'Wow! Just wow! Can I quote you back later? Oh, who am I kidding, of course I will,' he smirks.

The server comes to take their order and Nile asks for the largest, strongest, blackest coffee they have. She knows Booker promised not to complain but she really doesn't want to be obnoxious for the rest of the day, especially since it had been _her_ idea to wait and see the sun rise from the sea.

'How come _you_ 're so chipper?' she asks grudgingly. 'I feel like hell, how come _you_ don't?'

'Well, let's just say I'm very good at pretending,' he winks, slowly dragging a hand through his hair and Nile doesn't really care what time it is, it's too early for him to be this sexy. 'And if it makes you feel any better, my head is killing me and my eyes sting and I really, really wish we were in a bed right now, but you don't hear _me_ complaining because last night was fucking awesome!' he finishes with a flourish, grinning brightly at her. 'So, man up! This will be something to reminisce upon when we're all cooped up in one of Andy's godforsaken caves, all bruised and bloody while outside there's a fucking blizzard or hurricane or-'

'Ok, I believe you,' she cuts him off. 'You _do_ write poetry,' she continues and Booker smirks. 'Also, let me have a sip of coffee before you start rambling because I'd really like to be able to follow your train of thought without wincing from the effort every other second.'

They're silent after this and Nile is looking around the coffeehouse, idly tapping her fingers on the table when she's suddenly interrupted by Booker's quiet voice.

'Did you like it, though?' he asks hesitantly.

'What, the club? Which one?' she replies laughing, but he quickly shakes his head.

'No, the holiday,' he clarifies, a hint of uncertainty in his smile.

Nile looks at him closely and he really is unsure of her answer. She can't possibly understand why.

'Of course I did, Seb. Every second of it,' she smiles warmly, hoping the sincerity in her voice will drive away any doubt he might have. He smiles just as warmly, eyes shining with satisfaction.

'Good. Me too.'

\---

**Day 10**

They're the last ones to arrive at the safehouse in Lyon and Nile wonders how bad it is that she doesn't feel guilty at all for having suggested the afternoon flight. It's not like Booker had protested. Quite the opposite.

'Andy said the first but she didn't say what time, so as long as we're there by midnight, I think we're good,' he had theorised and they had both laughed like naughty kids.

It's not midnight but it's late in the evening when they make it to the small flat on the outskirts of the city and this is the moment when Nile realises that their holiday is actually over. She already misses having Booker all to herself. On the other hand, something has shifted in their relationship, in the way they _are_ around each other. She can't really put her finger on it but she knows he senses it too.

'Nice of you to finally join us,' Andy teases the moment they walk through the door, hugging each of them tightly.

'We missed you too, boss,' Booker teases back and it doesn't escape Nile that he's used the plural.

They take turns hugging Joe, Nicky and Quynh and by the time everyone's been squeezed tightly and kissed on the cheeks, Nile feels warm and fuzzy. She had missed them.

'So, how was the holiday?' she asks, looking expectantly at the four of them.

'Oh, you know, lounging around, reading, cooking...' Nicky says.

'Sleeping, painting,' Joe continues and Nile giggles.

'To each his own, huh?'

'Pretty much,' Joe grins. 'And these two didn't leave the hotel room too much,' he adds, nodding towards Andy and Quynh.

'As if _you_ did,' Quyhn quips sarcastically and Joe just grins and shrugs.

'What about you two? Did you guys have _fun_?' Nicky asks, emphasising the word _fun_ and Nile senses the teasing is about to start.

She opens her mouth to reply but Booker, who's been suspiciously quiet, beats her to it.

'Nu-uh. What happens in Romania stays in Romania,' he smirks wickedly.

'Oh, really?' Joe grins.

'Seb, behave,' Nile says warningly. She doesn't really know what he's playing at but fuck it, she'll always follow his lead.

'Or what?'

'Or I won't give you the books,' she threatens.

'But they're mine,' he literally whines.

'Maybe, but they're in _my_ backpack,' she smirks victoriously.

'Yeah, well, _your_ fangs are in _mine_ and unless you want to glue the pieces back together…'

'You wouldn't!' Nile gasps.

'You sure you wanna tempt a fiend?'

'Fuck my life! You're never gonna forget that, are you?'

'Told you I'd quote you back,' Booker winks.

'Yeah, but _less_ than twenty-four hours later?'

'It's way past noon, darling. And either way, if the opportunity arises..' he shrugs and Nile just crosses her arms and glares at him. Booker stares back defiantly.

'Ok, does either of you care to provide some context? Because we kind of lost you at some point,' Joe mutters.

So this is what Booker had been aiming for, distraction as a means of deflecting the taunting, at least for the time being. Very impressive, she thinks and it's like he can tell what's going through her mind because he winks again and smiles warmly at her. And this is the shift in their dynamics, she realises. They're now attuned to each other. It makes her heart ache pleasantly and she smiles back just as warmly.

'So?' Joe asks when she takes too long to reply and Booker cocks his head to the left, curious to hear her answer.

'Nope,' she grins slyly, 'but we have _lots_ of pictures to show you.'

\---

**Author's Note:**

> As promised: on day four, they take a trip to [Peleş Castle](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pele%C8%99_Castle) and then to [Bran Castle](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bran_Castle), and on day six they hike to [Caraiman Cross](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroes%27_Cross_on_Caraiman_Peak).
> 
> You can also find me on [Tumblr](https://energievie.tumblr.com/) in case you wanna say hi :)


End file.
